MINISTRY UPDATES AT FIRST PRES
(Updated 01/03/21)
Our contemporary worship service has moved back to 8:30 AM and our traditional service will remain at 11 AM. At 10 AM on Sundays, we are introducing FAITH FOUNDATIONS (see the Faith Foundations guide below). NURSERY and CHILDCARE will be available for both services, and we will LIVESTREAM both services on our website, Vimeo and Facebook. We will have a capacity of 120 people to allow for social distancing. Masks are required in worship, except for children under the age of 6. Nursery and childcare are limited to 10 children. Please help us better prepare for Sunday by continuing to pre-register for the worship service you will be attending, as well as for nursery or childcare.
MASKS IN WORSHIP
With numbers on the rise in Jackson County and after careful consideration following the governor’s most recent executive order affecting our county, we have decided to implement our mask mandate once again at First Presbyterian Church of Ocean Springs. Masks will be required in worship until further notice, except for children under the age of 6.
WORSHIP
We will have two worship services each Sunday at 8:30 AM (contemporary) and 11 AM (traditional). We will be able to accommodate 120 people at each service. Masks will be required in worship until further notice, except for children under the age of 6. In order for us to have safe gatherings for worship on Sunday mornings and allow for proper social distancing, we are asking everyone to PRE-REGISTER for 8:30 AM or 11 AM service each week. Seating capacity is 120 per service, and we are limiting our nursery and childcare areas to 10 each. If you must cancel your registration, please call the church office at 228-875-5326 by Friday at noon. If a service is full, please register for the other service.
If you or a family member are exhibiting COVID-19 symptoms, have underlying conditions or fall in a high-risk category, we ask that you worship with us online from the safety of your home. Serving our church family who continue to worship from home is a priority for us, and we are committed to providing a fruitful online worship experience for those remaining at home. For those continuing to worship from home, we will livestream both services at 8:30 AM and 11 AM on Sunday. You can find our livestream on our website, Vimeo and on Facebook. We will post a recording of worship later that morning.
We are providing NURSERY (ages 0-2) and CHILDCARE (ages 3-5), in a limited capacity, at both services. We will be able to accommodate 10 children in the nursery and 10 children in childcare at each service. You must register your child for nursery or childcare no later than NOON on Friday.
NURSERY: Children ages 0-2 can be dropped off starting at 8:15 AM (for 8:30 AM service) or 10:45 AM (for 11 AM service) on the first floor of the Education Building. Please practice social distancing as you drop off your child. Please pick up your child on the first floor immediately following the worship service.
CHILDCARE: Children ages 3-5 can be dropped off starting at 8:15 AM (for 8:30 AM service) or 10:45 AM (for 11 AM service) on the first floor of the Education Building. Please practice social distancing as you drop off your child. Please send a water bottle with your child’s name on it as they may be going outside. Please pick up your child on the first floor immediately following the worship service.
DISCIPLESHIP (FAITH FOUNDATIONS)
FAITH FOUNDATIONS (formerly our Sunday School hour) kicks off at 10 AM on Sunday, January 10. Check out what we have to offer for all ages!
FOUNDATIONS FOR KIDS
Ages 3-K – Room 103
1st – 3rd – Room 305
4th – 6th – Room 302
FOUNDATIONS FOR YOUTH
Harbor House
FOUNDATIONS FOR ADULTS
Prayer led by elder Gregg Bray – Chapel
Fellowship Time – Courtyard
Sermon Discussion with Director of Christian Education Steve Wood – Room 201
A Look at Genesis with Pastor Kory – Room 202
Prayer led by elder Gregg Bray – Chapel
Fellowship Time – Courtyard
Sermon Discussion with Director of Christian Education Steve Wood – Room 201
A Look at Genesis with Pastor Kory – Room 202
We will be livestreaming both Pastor Kory and Steve Wood’s classes at 10 AM. Each class has its own public Facebook group that you can access the livestream and participate in discussion throughout the week. To virtually access Pastor Kory’s class on Genesis, click here. To virtually access Steve Wood’s sermon discussion, click here.
MISSIONS
NO CURRENT UPDATES.
PRE-REGISTER FOR SUNDAY WORSHIP
The Lord’s Day worship is a day that unites us by grace as a covenant community whose high calling is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever. As we gather for worship in person, we are asking for your patience and cooperation as we abide by the CDC recommendations for safe gathering. Here’s how you can help!
Help us prepare for Sunday worship by pre-registering for worship, as well as nursery and childcare, below. Seating capacity is 120 people, and we are limiting our nursery and childcare areas to 10 each. If you must cancel your registration, please call the church office at 228-875-5326 by Friday at noon. Masks are required in worship until further notice.
Please check your family for COVID-19 related symptoms prior to worship. If you or a family member are exhibiting COVID-19 symptoms, have underlying conditions or fall in a high-risk category, we ask that you worship with us online from the safety of your home. Serving our church family who continue to worship from home is a priority for us, and we are committed to providing a fruitful online worship experience for those remaining at home.
CONTEMPORARY WORSHIP
WORSHIP FOR MARCH 7
We will livestream our 8:30 AM and 11:00 AM services on Sunday. If you are unable to tune in, we will archive the service approximately 30-45 minutes after it ends and it will be available below. We will also post our children’s worship service for families worshipping at home with young children Sunday. Download all of our weekly worship resources below (if you are not seeing the current week’s resources, please refresh your browser).
LENTEN WEDNESDAY WORSHIP
Lent is a season in which the church is called to consider what it means that Jesus journeyed with suffering. It’s a time for us to think about what it means that God would suffer with us, that God would suffer for us. And what does it mean for us to deny ourselves, take up our cross and to follow.
We will have LENTEN WEDNESDAY WORSHIP every Wednesday at 6 PM starting on February 17 through the season of Lent. We will be looking at different texts between Luke 9:51 and the crucifixion of Jesus and considering what it is Christ has called us to put aside as we seek to follow Him. Each week, we will be invited into a different and new kind of fast.
Our safe seating capacity for our Wednesday services will be 120 people, so please pre-register below if you plan to attend. We will not be offering childcare for these services. For those continuing to worship with us from home, we will livestream our Wednesday services.
We hope this season of Lent in the context of a greater season of difficulty for a lot of us really frames this difficulty in the light of the hope of the gospel.
FAITH FOUNDATIONS
Join us for Faith Foundations on Sundays at 10 AM! Please see our group listings below. Social distancing measures are in place and each room will have a safe capacity listed on the door. Pastor Kory’s group on Genesis and Steve Wood’s sermon discussions will be livestreamed at 10 AM each Sunday – you may join the Facebook groups using the links on this page. Additionally, if you are continuing to worship from home, the Faith Foundations for Kids lesson will be posted online each week HERE (password: fpcos).
FAITH FOUNDATIONS FOR KIDS
Ages 3-K – Room 103
1st-3rd Grade – Room 305
4th-6th Grade – Room 302
FAITH FOUNDATIONS FOR YOUTH
7th-10th Grade – Harbor House (11th & 12th graders are encouraged to participate in an adult group)
FAITH FOUNDATIONS FOR ADULTS
PRAYER led by Elder Gregg Bray – Chapel
SERMON DISCUSSION led by Steve Wood – Room 201
GENESIS led by Pastor Kory Duncan – Room 202
COMMONS IN THE COURTYARD – outdoor fellowship time
ONLINE WORSHIP SERVICE ARCHIVE
Use the navigation in the video player below to browse through our archive of full worship services since mid-March 2020.
SERVE SATURDAY
Join us for our next SERVE SATURDAY on MARCH 6 at 8 AM at First Pres! It takes a village to maintain a campus, and we need YOUR help, particularly with outdoor and landscaping projects. People of all skill levels can help! We will provide refreshments (bottled water, lemonade, OJ, fruit, cookies, breakfast food). Sign up in the area where you would like to serve. If you have tools, bring them and we’ll see you March 6!
WALKING IN THE WORD
Many people ask: How do I get to know Christ? How do I get to know the will of God? The answer: read the Word! God’s Word is a treasure book for all people. John Piper states, “From Genesis to Revelation, God’s words and God’s deeds reveal God himself for our knowledge and our enjoyment.”
During March, we will be walking through the book of Job. This one-month self-study will guide us as we read and meditate on God’s word. In Job, we see a man who God allows to be directly attacked by Satan. He is an example of faithfulness as he loses everything important to him yet remains faithful to God. Its purpose is to illustrate God’s sovereignty and faithfulness during a time of great suffering. Join us in the season of Lent as we look at the book of Job.
FRONT PORCH DEVOTIONALS WITH STEVE WOOD
CARING FOR OUR CHURCH AND COMMUNITY
Welcome to First Pres!
First Presbyterian Church of Ocean Springs is one of the many places where God’s great work is evident. We’re located in historic Ocean Springs, MS, and you’ll find a welcoming Christ-centered community of every generation when you walk through our doors. Come see why so many call First Pres home.
OUR MISSION IS TO KNOW CHRIST AND TO MAKE CHRIST KNOWN TOGETHER.